This is the hike. You get up close & personal to Fitz Roy. You also are able to obsessively stare at it for all but the first & last hours of the 4.5hr hike there which is helpful motivation. After the steep uphill first hour, Fitz Roy reveals itself to you in pretty spectacular fashion at a mirador & if you get your ass up before dawn, you can hit it for sunrise. Then you get to enjoy its beauty as it nears before disappearing again as you duck under the forest & then straight up the face of the mountain scrambling up boulders for the last 1km – the longest, most difficult 1km of my life. It’s because of this 1km that many people skip this hike – & the park service discourages it unless you’re in great shape & a very experienced trekker. I don’t fall into either of those categories but I figured how hard could it really be? Many people take a bus around (& up in elevation) to a different access point to skip the initial steep climb (& mirador) to save their legs for the last climb. Many people do the hike & then just refuse the final climb as they review all of the warning signs & head back (it’s still over a 7hr day minus the last climb). And many people who do the full trek, take 2hrs to make the final climb. I didn’t cut any corners but that last 1km was no joke. It took me 45mins for that climb & I was making pretty good time vs others around me. Now the same hike down took me 1hr thanks to my fear of heights & worthless knee but oh well. After you reach the plateau, & hike up another little tease when you just want to be done, is this amazing teal colored glacial lake, Laguna de Los Tres, views of 2 different glaciers, Mount Fitz Roy & Mount Poincenot right in front of you, & surrounded by a chain of mountains. It’s glorious really. But my goodness was it a long day, the hardest trekking day I’ve ever done in my life by a long shot that totally kicked my ass, but accomplishing it felt so great. I ended my trek at the spa where I promptly booked a massage for that very night as I wasn’t sure my body & feet could go on without one. And there were more treks to do.
El miradorMy now new fave photo of the trip – I may have made my own path to get to the other side of this adorable little pondYou can see, just above my right ear, a plateau – that’s where I’m headed. Just over that plateau is a lovely little turquoise lake.
These fall colors are insane!First good view of the glacierLast view of her before I duck into the forest & then take that straight uphill path to the topI needed a break halfway up. This is where I cam fromIn phenomenal timing, I got to the top just as this couple jumped off that big old rock down on the left into the water naked. It was amazing. I let them have their time, get dressed & then I scrambled down the rocky hill to the lake & yep, just as I expected… freezing cold. They’re my heroes. Laguna Capri on the return
So I’m just going to come out & say it. El Chalten in Argentina is my favorite place I’ve visited on this trip. Yes, that just happened. It’s this perfect little quaint charming town of 1,000 situated inside the Northern end of the same Parque Nacional Los Glaciares that El Calafate borders from the South. In its backyard are these unbelievable mountains dominated by Mount Fitz Roy & Cerro Torre. The hiking trails start right from this darling town. You just throw on your daypack & walk out the door. You don’t have to give a thought to transport. It’s so easy. Well not the treks but the accessibility. It’s obvious I am a massive fan of Torres del Paine. But Torres del Paine is not nearly as accessible as El Chalten. The closest town to Torres del Paine is Puerto Natales, 2hrs away. Unless you’re tent camping in the park, nearby lodging is quite expensive & it’s still a 45-75 min transport to/from the trails (or ferries leading to the trails). I would also argue the treks, mountains & views in El Chalten are just as challenging, rewarding & beautiful as those in Torres del Paine. That’s why it’s number 1.
Merely 30 minutes into the 4hr drive from El Calafate, the bus comes around a bend & perfectly highlighted by the sunrise 75 miles away is Fitz Roy sparkling far above everything else in sight. Fitz Roy getting increasingly large as we neared town only made the rest of the ride go pretty quickly as did passing an estancia previously owned by Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid where they chilled for a few years prior to heading to Bolivia (where they supposedly weren’t killed – I never before knew there was controversy here – now I don’t have to cry anymore at the end of that movie).
The town itself is only 31 years old & still small but I’m told is unsurprisingly expanding. It already has some wonderful tiny local restaurants, cervecerias, supermercados & 1 lovely spa I frequented & made friends w the owners. But the town is solely focused on the trekkers. The quarter-full bus arriving makes its required first stop at the national park’s visitors center for a debrief, trail maps & open Q&A session. They know why you’re visiting & want to make it as easy as possible & also make clear they care about preserving the park. But unlike El Calafate, which is much bigger & not shy about sticking it to you, there’s no fee in El Chalten for the SAME national park (the one where I paid $35 a day to visit on top of the expensive glacier tours). In fact, El Chalten is in a fight with the Argentine Parks system to keep it no-fee as the town itself is within the park’s borders. After a 15min walk from the bus station to my hotel, where I had already booked for 3 nights, I immediately doubled my stay before I even ventured on a single hike. I just had a feeling about the place. And because I’m so enamored, there’s going to be a few blog posts – based on my 3 favorite treks. The first was a hike to a vantage point w a lovely panoramic view of the area. Then after seeing that view, I of course, had to get up close & personal to Mount Fitz Roy together with Mount Poincenot, Mount Torre & the chain of mountains that surround them.
The view arriving to town. Was there ever a doubt I’d get stuck here?The tiny little town backed by the big ol’ mountainsThe afternoon I arrived, I did a little 2-hr hike to get me real excited for the next dayMy fave part of every (clear) day (& I was blessed w a lot) was the 5 mins just as the sun is about to peek over the hills at 8:30am (right before winter, days start late). Fitz Roy is this crazy cool glittering sparkling pink. For 5 mins only. I’d purposely get up early & start hiking w my headlamp while dark so I could make it to a place (maybe not quite the best spot but I had 8-10hrs of hiking each day) so I could enjoy it. Since I visited in the offseason, I usually had trails to myself that early. But everyday there was an exception & while this amazing magical event was happening, I was firmly planted in one place to enjoy it, but a group of hikers would trod past me barely looking up from the trail. I sometimes wanted to shake them & yell that life isn’t about the destination people, it’s about the journey & you’re missing the best 5 mins of every day!!! But I’d keep my mouth shut & silently enjoy it while they beat me to the top to enjoy a lovely view – but one not quite as beautiful as the one they missed.5 mins later. The sun is fully up. It’s still spectacular but it’s not glittering sparkling magical pinkThere she is. I couldn’t see her for awhile. Nice to know where I’m headed. Ta-dahHow happy do I look? I’m even genuinely smiling for a selfie after an all uphill 4hr hike.
There’s nothing better after a long day of hiking than digging into a rich, delicious, warming bowl of stew – or “locro” – served in a red clay earthenware bowl with white beans, sweet potatoes, hominy, carrots, beef, pancetta, onions, red peppers, garlic, paprika, cumin, etc. It reminded me so much of a French cassoulet & so I thought a lot about my bro, as we’ve enjoyed a few lovely cassoulets together in Seattle at the cafe. The locro & the most perfectly homemade empanada along w a couple of freshly brewed beers or a glass of an Argentine Malbec was the perfect end to amazing days. Did I write a post lately bitching about the food in SA? Bc that seems so preposterous right now. Perhaps Argentina will save me after all. I must say, I’ve been stomach-problem free for the last month… knock on wood.
So I’m 3 months into my trip across South America & I’m thinking it’s pretty close to my midpoint as I’m tentatively targeting end of June / beginning of July for my return. Let’s be real… Chicago is an amazing city, especially in the summer, & I need to minimize the missed Cubs games, boat days, street fests, etc (my life is real tough right now I know). I thought I’d take the time to (quickly) reflect on a few things as people recently have been asking me what I prefer: South America or SE Asia. I respond by saying the 2 trips are completely different but then I’m left unable to explain myself. So I did some thinking & came up with the following:
The food – A big part of traveling for me is experiencing the food. I love to eat. I can’t overestimate how much I miss the food in SE Asia, especially the soups & noodle dishes of Vietnam & the curries of Thailand. The food here in South America? Bleh. It’s nothing new, thought provoking or life changing like Asia. Inland it’s a lot of meat & potatoes. On the coast, it’s a lot of fresh seafood. Have I had good even great meals? Of course. But it’s so familiar that it just doesn’t get me excited & I oftentimes find myself daydreaming about Bun Bo Nam Bo in Hanoi & wondering how much a flight to Vietnam would cost.
My stomach – So this is related to the food but it’s much more than that… something about the food, beers, wine, booze, etc in SE Asia just agreed with me. In 6 months I never had travelers’ stomach issues & no matter if I over indulged a bit, never suffered from a hangover. Neither are the case here. So not only is the food more boring, it far too often leaves me feeling like shit. Same goes for the booze. In SE Asia, I inquired about ingredients or lack thereof & people responded the countries had different laws regarding preservatives (as in much more strict) & everything was very fresh. Now I don’t pretend to be a knowledgeable health nut but something is different down here & it’s unfortunate for me. Now I’ve only just arrived in Argentina so haven’t yet tried their “amazing beef” but there sure is a lot riding on that if it’s going to totally change my opinion.
The sights – With the exception of the Northern coast of Colombia & the Galapagos, which are both phenomenal trip highlights, most of the places I’ve visited & things to do on this trip are land based. Obviously it’s driven by this little ol’ mountain range known as the Andes that runs the length of the continent. That terrain is without question more varied than SE Asia as it includes mountains, deserts, cloud forests, salt flats, lakes, etc. & I’ve enjoyed it immensely but I’m going on 2 months at altitude with no view of an ocean & while I’m loving it, I’d be lying if I said I didn’t miss my remote island paradises every now & then. I’m thinking of ending my trip in Brazil wandering the northern coast from tiny beach to tiny beach, after swinging by the Amazon, so hopefully that’ll give me my fix.
The activities – This is obviously related to the above. There’s a helluva lot of trekking & hiking in South America while I’ve only gone diving once. Ask me before my trip & I’d be bummed about it but I am really enjoying getting outdoors & getting dirty, perhaps more than I even imagined (I’m in Patagonia as I type this & I’m fucking loving it) & I keep extending my trekking stays bc there’s never enough time. After days here filled with challenging 8-10hr treks & incredibly beautiful mountainous views, I feel more physically accomplished much more often than I did in SE Asia. But there is something about being underwater in this crazy different world & totally reliant on this stupid air tank that really gets me going so I’m going to have to find a good spot for that before I leave.
The language – So this is going to seem counterintuitive to just about everyone but my elementary knowledge of the Spanish language & ability to communicate & have basic conversations obviously has its perks but I kinda miss having to really work hard at communicating. It’s crazy I know. I’ve thought long & hard about this but I really think it’s true for me. Now it certainly makes functioning on a daily basis much easier. I can read menus & signs / trailheads & ask questions & understand the answers which is all great. But it also means there are fewer surprises, misunderstandings & challenges throughout the day & I apparently somewhat miss those. I fondly recall communication struggles in SE Asia & I don’t think I’m rewriting history or my memory is failing me. Traveling in SE Asia was much more difficult than traveling in South America & i think it made me feel a bit more accomplished. Not that I mind the ease of traveling here.
The culture – I feel as if the culture in SE Asia was overwhelming. The Asian cities screamed culture as they were vastly different from what I know while many big cities in SA are obviously more westernized. The food, the language, the religion, the cities in SE Asia are all very different from what I know so it seems a bit more foreign or exotic. And many of the places I visited in SE Asia seemed very remote & rather untouched by tourism. The only place that nears that so far in South America is Punta Gallinas in Northern Columbia. I’d love to find more of that down here. But so far, South America to me is less about the culture & more about these incredible outdoor adventures around every corner. And that’s an amazing thing.
So I still don’t have an answer but all I know is I’m having a great time & not even close to ready to returning. So on to the next adventure.
amusemusings 